


Annabelle

by MagicalBunny



Category: Splatoon
Genre: Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-07 10:04:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19207150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicalBunny/pseuds/MagicalBunny
Summary: A missing little Inkling girl with a smile as bright as the sun.A strong hero with cold golden eyes and a heart of stone.Something happened in the past to make Agent 3 push everyone away. It's time Agent 4 and Agent 8 find out. Perhaps then, they can get Agent 3 to work with them instead of against them.





	1. Another Day

As the morning sun began to rise, life in Inkopolis slowly began to stir awake. Though Inklings normally liked sleeping later, some had to get up for jobs, school, or perhaps some other sort of activity.

Down the sidewalks a young inkling ran, dodging people as quick as she could. Short yellow tentacles bounced as she ran, occasionally calling out an apology as she ran past people. 

Oh man, she thought. I'm going to be late! Again! Marie is going to kill me!

Yet as she was running, something caught her attention. The bakery windows were open and she couldn't tear her attention away from the scent of fresh bread. Jogging in place, she grimaced. Did she risk being late and go to the bakery? Or did she ignore it and continue running? After a few moments of hesitation, she let out a heavy sigh and gave into the temptation. Bakery it was.

\------

"You're late, Agent 4."

The inkling braced for the inevitable whack she would receive from the grey-tentacled inkling, but instead received a someone light tap on the head from the other's umbrella. 

"I'm sorry, I woke up late, and then I got distracted on my way here..."

"Distracted by...?"

Agent 4 looked down at the container in her hands, then looked back up.

"I... brought cookies?"

There was a sigh from the older Inkling, who gestured for her to take a seat. 

"You know if you keep buying sweets, you'll end up out of shape, 4."

The agent huffed. "Round is a shape."

"Uh-huh. Anyways... we should begin today's briefing."

The octoling who had been sitting in the corner suddenly raised her hand. Her brilliant red tentacles were tied up as always, grey eyes filled with concern.

"But Agent 2... Agent 3 isn't here yet!"

Marie sighed. Oh boy, here come the questions.

"Agent 3 won't be joining us today."

Callie, who had been sitting surprisingly quiet, chirped up. "She almost never misses a day of work! Is she sick or something?"

"No, Callie. Today is just..."

"Or is she avoiding us like always? If she doesn't like us, she can just say!" Agent 4 leaned back and crossed her arms. Agent 8 looked down.

"That's not it either. It's just-" 

"It's a bad day for her," the Cap'n said, walking into the cabin and shutting the creaky door behind him. "A very bad day."

"A bad day?" Agent 8 cocked her head to the side.

"Why? What could be so bad that she's missing work?" Agent 4 blinked, leaning in. 

"I'm not sure if I have the right to share that with you," Marie replied after a moment of thought. "You might just have to ask her."

"She doesn't tell us anything!" The yellow inkling huffed. "That's so unfair..."

"We're only worried about her," Agent 8 spoke up. "We're a team, right? So someone's suffering affects all of us."

Marie went quiet after that, looking at Cap'n for guidance. He just shrugged his shoulders, and Marie sighed.

"Alright, I guess I can tell you. You see, Agent 3 wasn't always this way. She used to be quite the enthusiastic energetic child. Much like you, Agent 4."

"Really? I can't imagine that."

"Yeah, but... everything changed one day. On this day, a few years ago, Agent 3 failed her first and only mission. It began like any other day..."


	2. Enter the Hero

She was late again. The Cap'n was going to kill her. They talked about her tardiness yesterday, and she had promised him that she'd be on time today! Yet here she was, running through the city streets, which were beginning to fill up with the morning crowd, with her hero headset around her neck and her yellow vest slung over her shoulder and her ink tank on the other shoulder, hero shot in one hand and her phone in the other. Never mind the piece of toast she shoved in her mouth before running out of her apartment.

She was almost a pro at dodging people on the sidewalk, usually shouting an apology behind her as she ran. Her throat was almost always sore by the time she got to the valley. And while she was good, there were times where she still collided with pedestrians. And by the looks of it, it was going to be one of those mornings. Everything had been going well, until she accidentally jumped in the way of a biker who couldn't stop in time. 

Next thing she knows, she's on the ground, along with the adult Inkling who had been biking. And there were flyers everywhere. Was he hanging these up? Nevermind that, was he okay?

"I'm so sorry-"

"No, it's okay. I was going a bit fast. I'm in a hurry."

She blinked. "Me too, actually. But, um... let me help clean up this mess first."

"I got it, really. Just... do me a favor and take one and share it around, alright? It's-"

"Yeah, sure!" She swiped one up off the ground and shoved it in her pocket. She'd read it later. "Thanks, mister!"

The older inkling sighed, watching as the young Inkling took off running down the street again. "She was a lot like her..."

\------

"You're late!"

She braced for impact, and surely enough, Cuttlefish whacked her on the top of her head. It wasn't too hard, but it wasn't light either. She winced, rubbing where he had hit her. 

"I'm sorry, Cap'n. I woke up late and collided with a bike on the way here."

The old inkling stared at her for a moment, before sighing. He wobbled over to his couch and sat down with a sigh.

"I really am sorry, Cap'n. Really. I'll be on time tomorrow. For real this time," the agent replied, guilt dripping into her voice. "I thought I could sleep for a little longer, and then it turned into hours longer..."

"It's fine, kiddo. Never mind that, we have important work to do."

"You have a new assignment for me?"

"Mhm. Its an important one too. Possibly dangerous. That's why I need my best agent. Well, that and-"

"Agents 1 and 2 are too busy."

"... Quite. Have you watched the news lately?"

"Not exactly, no. I'm not into all the doom and gloom."

Cuttlefish hummed. "An inkling child went missing. Evidence is pointing to Octarian involvement."

"But... how? How did one escape?"

"The kettles are expansive. It's possible someone managed to sneak out of one. It's quite bold of them to travel to Inkopolis, too." The veteran leaned back, looking at the hero before him. "I need you to look into this for me. There could be a scared Inkling child in the kettles. Be her hero, Agent 3. Return her to her family."

\-----

"Do you think this is why she pushes everyone away?" Callie leaned in towards her cousin, who paused her tale.

"Actually, maybe. She did grow quite distant from us after the whole incident."

"So you guys used to be close?" Agent 4 perked up. "I can't imagine it. She doesn't seem like the friendly type."

"Mm... We used to talk sometimes, yes. But when we got really busy, and..."

"... Then Marie and I grew apart, and Agent 3 was left alone with Gramps." Marie turned to the old Inkling who was sitting silently. He sighed, closing his eyes.

"Yes, Agent 3 and I used to be pretty close. She was like another grandchild to me. But after what happened... She never was the same. Like she tries to keep her distance to avoid being hurt again."

"I still can't imagine her being happy or getting along with anyone," Agent 4 replied, crossing her arms."But anyways, continue, Marie."

The grey tentacled inkling nodded, humming. "Now where was I..."


	3. The Sunken Lab

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoy my works, feel free to follow me on twitter @OfficialAgent3

"Agents 1 and 2 were looking into some strange energy readings coming from one of the deeper kettles," the voice from her headset explained. "It might be best to start looking there."

"You think there might be something there?" She replied, dodging a glob of Octarian ink that had been shot at her from one of the Octotroopers nearby. The thing was smart enough to run away and hide after firing at her. She had opted to keep to the higher platforms rather than traversing the cities and towns below. It was, believe it or not, safer this way. "You think the kid is there?"

"We don't know for sure, but if she is, we're killing two birds with one stone."

"Alright, I trust you. Guess it would save me a trip." She sighed, continuing her jog through kettle after kettle. Invisible paths, octocopters and octostamps, octosnipers and octoballs... She handled all of them with ease. Nothing slowed her down. She was in it to win.

\-----

Deeper and deeper she traveled, dodging obstacles and jumping hurdles. This was all in her DNA by now, she's done it over and over so many times. Nothing fazed her anymore. Not even when she arrived in the kettle.

The screens on the walls all were filled with static, and there was no life around to be seen. The rooftop she was on was surrounded by water, as if this kettle wasn't always submerged. Was this one of the kettles that had filled with water? She sucked in a breath, stepping off the respawn pad. The structure seemed to be still in tact... that was good. What better hiding place for a kidnapper to hide?

There was an air vent and an elevator, and other structure parts that Agent 3 didn't care about. This was too easy. Way too easy.

As if on cue, a group of octolings jumped out of hiding, weapons pointed at her. Agent 3 sighed, throwing her hands up in the air.

"Oh no. You caught me," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "What are you gonna do? Shoot me?"

One of the Octolings tensed, adjusting her hold on the trigger. She mumbled something in octarian, and the agent just laughed, slowly walking closer and closer to the group.

"It's a shame. I thought I was going to have fun on this mission. How... boring."

"Boring?! Is that all you have to say when you have several guns pointed at your face?!" One of the octarians shouted. 

"Yes, well... been there, done that. Can i continue now, or are you ladies going to give me trouble?"

A sudden glob of ink was shot at her, and she swiftly stepped to the side. 

"Alright, then. Trouble it is."

The inkling was quick to dodge roll the oncoming fire, unhooking her gun from her belt and returning fire just as fast with her Hero shot. Hit after hit, until no one was left. She sighed, securing her gun back to her belt and over the ink splattered concrete.

"No hard feelings, ladies?"

Silence. The hero scoffed, entering the elevator and hit the button for the lowest floor. The elevator doors closed, and slowly it began to descend.

\-----

"Agent 3 reporting in. Can you hear me?"

"Barely," came the Cap'n's voice on the other end. "You must be really deep underground."

"Yeah, but it was a piece of cake getting here." The Agent leaned up against the wall of the elevator, looking up at the buzzing light. "It looks like it might be easier than I thought."

"Don't get too cocky, bucko. This isn't Octavio we are dealing with."

"I know, but how bad can one Octoling be?"

Without warning, the elevator stopped and the lights went out. 3 paused, slowly walking towards the buttons and clicking them, only to get no response from the elevator. 

"Hey, Cap'n? We'll talk later."

"What's happening? Agent 3?"

She could feel the carriage swaying, and a feeling of dread formed in the pit of her stomach. Quickly, she began to try to pry the elevator doors open, to no avail. She began to look for some sort of safety hatch or emergency escape, only to find none.

And then it was falling. She was falling.

She grabbed onto the rail and squeezed her eyes shut, sucking in a breath.

There was a crash, a sharp pain, and then, there was nothing.


	4. Way Down

There was nothing but darkness surrounding her. It felt like she was floating, suspended in the air. She reached out, only for her fingertips to meet water. At least, she thought it was water. It felt like water, but it didn't burn her. She went to reach for her headset, only to find that it was gone. In fact, she was only in her under armor and nothing else. Yet it wasn't cold. 

She turned back to the wall, only to meet her reflection this time. Golden eyes stared back at her, full of wonder and confusion. She reached her hand out again, touching the reflection, creating ripples through the water. When it calmed, her reflection was different.

The word "MURDERER" was carved into her skin. All over. She tried to rub it off, but it wouldn't come off. Her breathing picked up, and she began to scratch at her skin in a desperate attempt to make the words go away.

"I'm not a murderer! I'm not! I was just protecting my city! STOP IT!"

She couldn't stand her own reflection anymore, with this unbearable word carved all over her. She let out a scream, and with all her might, punched her reflection's face. Instead of a splash, it actually shattered into pieces as if it were glass. And then there was nothing. Nothing but her silent sobs, and eventually even those faded, too.

\-----

She gasped, her eyes opening. Everything hurt. Every inch of her being was screaming in agony. She began coughing, waving away dust and debris from the air. She was still in the elevator cart. Or at least, what was left of it. The thing was wrecked, sparks flying from broken wires and the walls crumbling. She began to wonder how far she really fell. 

Agent 3 hissed in pain, reaching up to her forehead. It hurt like hell, and she had a pretty nasty cut on it too. The sliver of light that peeked through the opening was enough to see the blood on her hand. 

The agent sighed heavily, slowly pushing herself to her feet. She stumbled a few times, but was finally able to pull herself up. She let out a sigh, dusting herself off as best as she could.

"Cap'n? Can you hear me?"

No response. Nothing but radio static. She was truly on her own now. She sighed, facing towards the partly opened elevator doors. Obviously the control panel was broken so there was no way she could just open the doors easily. Luckily, the gap was just enough for her to wiggle her fingers into a get a good grip on the door. Using all her strength and body weight, she pulled on the door, slowly prying it open. Finally, she managed to pull it open enough for her to wiggle through, and she stumbled out into the light, falling to her hands and knees. She began to cough, breathing in the wonderful clean air.

Everything was white. The floor tiles, the walls... all sickeningly white. The only sounds were her heavy breathing and the fluorescent lights humming. She lifted her head, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness. 

After she managed to catch her breath, she stumbled to her feet again, a look of fierce determination coming to her face. Okay, so whoever is behind this is not messing around. 

She unclipped her gun from her belt, ready to adventure down the hallway.

Her footsteps echoed down the halls as she walked past abandoned storage rooms and some boarded up rooms. She stalked around a corner, only to freeze.

"W... what is this...?" She whispered to herself, eyes wide in fear.

The walls were lined with cells filled with creatures, all behind a thick glass wall. Some looked up when they saw her, others weren't moving at all. Some of them seemed sad and miserable, others showed no emotion at all. There were Octolings, with parts replaced by technology. One of them saw her and bared their teeth. Another with really long tentacles and an extra sharp beak charged at the glass in an attempt to get to her, only to slam into the barrier. Agent 3 backed away quickly, shaking her head and her hands up. She bumped into another cell, containing a regular looking octoling. They saw the newcomer and ran over, banging on the glass. A desperate plea for freedom.

Agent 3 couldn't breathe. This was terrible. She felt like she was going to be sick.

It wasn't just octolings, either. There was an octobomber that sat there, holding a small octocopter. It just stared sadly as Agent 3 walked by.

She eventually even came across an octoling that was crying. 3 paused, walking up to the glass. The girl turned around, and there was nothing but blood. Blueish blood that streamed down her face from her eyes and mouth. She looked at the inkling, mouthing the words 'help me'. She even attempted to crawl towards the glass barrier, only to collapse. 

3 watched her take her final breath.

She felt like she was going to be sick.

The Inkling kept her head down almost for the rest of the time she was walking through the cells, until she spotted something. Or rather, someone.

There was a young bubblegum pink Inkling girl crying, her clothes basically nothing but rags. Agent 3's eyes widened, and she quickly ran up to the glass. 

An Inkling, down here in the kettles. A child, nonetheless. She didn't have full control over her humanoid form.

This had to be her. 3 took a deep breath, gently placing her hand against the cold glass.

"The missing child."


End file.
